Chicken Soup

I needed chicken soup today. I mean needed. I am pretty picky about my chicken soup and it is something I have been making my whole life. I have a few different versions that I tweak as needed and per occasion.

Today called for straight up chicken soup, the kind your grandma would make. So that’s what I did.

It is so simple but it does take some time and patience.

First you put all your vegetables and chicken into a very deep stock pot. I usually save chicken necks and wings and things like that in my freezer for the days that I want to make stock. Today I got all those saved pieces out and added 1 whole bone in, skin on breast. To that I added 2 carrots, peeled and left whole, 2 whole celery stalks with leaves, 1 large onion, cut in half but not peeled, 1 smashed garlic clove not peeled and a small handful of peppercorns and about 2 TBS of salt.

Cover this with water all the way and bring to a boil. Then simmer. For hours. See here’s the thing, soup is easy but you must have patience. I simmered this concoction for 4 hours because I had the time. It probably doesn’t need that long but in my personal opinion, the longer it simmers the deeper the flavor. So simmer for as long as you can.

Skim any bubbles and foam off as you simmer, this is fat and you don’t need it. It may look grey, don’t worry, just skim it off and discard.

After simmering for as long as you can, strain the soup over a strainer into a large pot and discard all the vegetables. Sometimes I puree them for a thicker soup and add them back in, but not today. Today I discarded. Then I shredded the chicken and cooked some wide egg noodles. I peeled a couple of carrots and added that back to the strained stock. Then I added about 1 TBS of apple cider vinegar and tasted for seasoning. In a separate bowl I placed some shredded chicken and noodles and then covered with stock. I covered with the chicken broth and carrots. And I had the perfect bowl of comfort.

Here’s what you need:

1 large chicken breast breast cut in half and more chicken parts if you have

2 carrots, peeled

2 celery stalks, washed

1 garlic clove, smashed

1 onion, cut in half and not peeled

S & P to taste

1 TBS Apple Cider vinegar

wide egg noodles

Put all veggies and chicken in a large stock pot. Also S&P. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 hours or more. Strain and remove veggies and chicken. Discard veggies. Shred chicken. Add Apple cider vinegar to chicken broth and more carrots or veggies if desired. Cook noodles and add to stock. Enjoy.